Recipe ideas and commentary on the new food culture by professional photographer Tom Schmidt in Chicago. Get inspired to cook something awesome!

Essential Homemade

Homemade Yogurt Sous Vide Method (Cow or Goat Milk)

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There's yogurt and then there is HOMEMADE yogurt.  You've got to try this recipe to get a taste of the fragrant and deliciousness of a freshly crafted yogurt.  Yogurt, probably super difficult to make, right?  They sell so much pre-made in sooo many different flavors, but none stand a chance against the homemade version.  This dish has become a little treat we enjoy nearly every day now and we simply eat it plain! Yogurt Recipe for Sous Vide The origins of our yogurt making date back to a …

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Applesauce Recipe – Easy Homemade Method

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Homemade applesauce, although sort of resembles the store-bought stuff, blows it away with the soft texture and wonderful sweetness. Sometimes the simple things are worth making at home. Applesauce is another homemade item that you probably think: “Shoot, that probably requires some tools I don’t have…” Actually… all you need is a peeler, knife, pot and smasher. Boom applesauce! It’s so stinkin easy that you will likely pull it right into your set of GO TO recipes. The apples used …

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Chicken Hot Wings – Oven Roasted and Cooked to Perfection

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Do chicken hot wings have their own place in the food pyramid? I think they might have left them off the bottom because they are a must in any balanced diet… Maybe they just ran out paper when they were drawing the pyramid. Glorious chicken hot wings, how I love thee. If there ever was a food that could brighten even a dark Chicago winter day, it would have to be the perfectly roasted chicken wing, with magic dust of course, and finished with some Frank’s hot sauce. Worries disappear as …

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Hamburger Recipes, Grind Your Own Beef at Home!

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Grind Your Own Beef at Home for Amazing Hamburger Recipes! With a simple food processor you too can have the best burgers known to man!  Grinding your own 'burger meat transforms a household comfort food into a luxury item.  Start with a fresh piece of organic grass-fed beef and you should claim the “Grill Master” title from your buddies. By doing the grinding yourself, you retain complete control of what goes into your burger.  I think we all have realized that there are truly unspeakable …

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Perfect Roasted Chicken Recipe – Impress the Ladies!

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Perfect Oven Roasted Chicken Recipe The easiest way to get the perfect girl to fall in love with you, serve her a perfectly roasted beautiful bird.  The mythical aphrodisiac effects of the golden crispy skin and luscious meat will unfold before your very eyes.  Or at least she will give a hearty compliment on your valiant attempt and big hug.  But hey, I’ve heard success stories… Recipe Inspiration - The Perfectly Roasted Chicken, Mindy Fox This method really benefits from starting with a high …

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Pressure Cooker Recipe – How to Cook Dry Beans w/ Timetable

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How to Cook Dry Beans - Pressure Cooker Recipe Do people actually cook with those dried beans or does everyone just layer them into Mason Jars to gain hipster points?  The traditional way of preparing beans, with the overnight soak, hours of cooking, and on and on is just too much for me.  Fine I’ll just eat the canned stuff if that is the only option. Then I was introduced to one of my favorite new tools in the kitchen, the pressure cooker!  My dad bought me this one (Fagor …

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How to Make Homemade Chicken Stock Recipe

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Chicken Stock Recipe with How To Instructions Chicken stock from scratch is one of the most under-rated, and under appreciated beauties in cooking.  This winter I have been making lots of soups and they all seem to require some form of soup stock.  Then I got kinda cheap, and thought...man, 4 bucks for some chicken flavored water...  So I began making my own.  Then I started canning it too. I have utilized a pressure cooker to make this a quicker process, but you can do it …

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